Collected Illustrations of the Three Realms, Volume 73

Collected Illustrations of the Three Realms: Volume Nine, Human Affairs

Page Nine

The River Map original: "Hetu" (河圖); an ancient cosmological grid of numbers. uses the number five to reside in the center. By combining this five with the one in the North, it forms six, which represents the element of Water and the Yu sound. The Yu sound (羽) is the fifth note of the pentatonic scale, roughly equivalent to "la" in Western music. Combining it with the two in the South forms seven, representing Fire and the Zhi sound. The Zhi sound (徵) is the fourth note, roughly equivalent to "sol." Combining it with the three in the East forms eight, representing Wood and the Jue sound. The Jue sound (角) is the third note, roughly equivalent to "mi." Combining it with the four in the West forms nine, representing Metal and the Shang sound. The text omits the specific note name here, but the Shang sound (商), or "re," is the traditional West/Metal correspondence. Combining five with the five at the center forms ten, which is the Gong sound. The Gong sound (宮) is the fundamental tonic note or "do," associated with the Earth element and the center.

The Gong sound governs the other four sounds. Exhalation [is associated with] the Kidney and Liver, while inhalation [is associated with] the Heart and Lung; these processes are never separate from the Spleen and its Intention. In traditional Chinese medicine, the Spleen is the central organ of transformation, and "Intention" (Yi 意) is the mental faculty attributed to it. Therefore, it is said that the Gong sound moves the Spleen and harmonizes it with the virtue of Sageliness. The Yu sound moves the Kidney and harmonizes it with Wisdom. The Jue sound moves the Liver and harmonizes it with Benevolence. The Zhi sound moves the Heart and harmonizes it with Ritual. The Shang sound moves the Lung and harmonizes it with Righteousness.

Exhalation is Yang and inhalation is Yin; these are called the Two Modes. The "Two Modes" (Liangyi 兩儀) refer to the fundamental duality of Yin and Yang. The Yu and Jue sounds represent Great Yin giving birth to Lesser Yang. The Zhi [and Shang] sounds represent Great Yang giving birth to Lesser Yin. These are called the Four Emblems. The "Four Emblems" (Sixiang 四象) are the four stages of the interaction between Yin and Yang, often mapped to the seasons. When these are expressed through the Five Tones, they must be broadcast through the Eight Instruments. The "Eight Instruments" (Bayin 八音) refers to the traditional classification of instruments by material: metal, stone, silk, bamboo, gourd, clay, hide, and wood. Through this, the Five Breaths are distributed in their proper order, the Four Seasons proceed, and the Eight Trigrams are established. The River Map is simply the Supreme Ultimate and nothing more. The "Supreme Ultimate" (Taiji 太極) is the singular source of all existence in Chinese philosophy.